11/13/2008

Where My Money Went - Nov. 12th

Every Wednesday I push the limits of my budget for my comic addiction. This is where my money went this week:

Karen actually started picking up Avengers Fairy Tales and I pretty much shat all over it. After reading the first three I bought the fourth and final installment "for Karen", a story about She-Hulk getting knocked out by Whirlwind, and awakening in the World of Oz. The best part of the Fairy Tale books is that the characters aren't always easy to figure out. The casting choices are obvious Cap as the Cowardly Lion, Thor as The Scarecrow and Iron Man as Tin Man. It's fucked up to look just a little closer though and realize that without his Bravery Captain America is just a strong dude, Thor without his brain is just another viking but with you know, lightning and Iron Man without a heart is...well alright, Iron Man needs a heart.

Superman and Batman Vs. Vampires and Werewolves knows exactly how stupid it is, and that's it's strength. Batman screams the words "Superman, NO--you don't understand! It's--MAGIC" and then a giant snail monster knocks Supes into a building with one of his tentacles. Batman investigates and Superman punches Vampires and Werewolves while Werewolves and Vampires eat people. Then Green Arrow saves the day. This comic rules.

A Magneto origin story cleverly masks this powerful Holocaust historical narrative. Trying to protect his family, young Magneto becomes a smuggler and attempts to save his family but pushes them closer and closer to the camps. I have a hard time reading this comic because as much as I want his powers to manifest in that issue, once I start reading I only worry about his well being.

Without a doubt in my mind The Joker in Batman Confidential:Do You Understand These Rights? is based on the Mark Hamill Joker from The Batman Animated Series. He never speaks straight and is in love with Batman's polar opposite insanity, plays with puns and is a total mystery to everyone around him. On his way to his trial, Joker manages to steal a pen and kills the correctional officers driving him to the court house and steals the armored car. Being an upstanding citizen, Joker drives himself his hearing. One-faced Harvey Dent stands for all Joker has killed as a sad public defender attempts to make sense of the most nonsensical dude ever. Oh, and Joker kills the judge with a peanut.

After all the delays I'm so excited this book wasn't shitty. Wolverine #69 picks right up where #68 left off, not missing a beat. Wolverine saves Hawkeye, the two weirdos riding in the Spider-Mobile being chased by dudes on dinosaurs. Seriously, dinosaurs!! We see the Mole People's true nature, eating the flesh off of bodies that have fallen into their huge holes. The most messed up thing about the comic isn't even the story, it's the backgrounds. A hundred foot tall Loki in the middle of North Dakota (renamed Electroville) lies as a skeleton crushed by a Manhattan skyscraper. Think about that, North Dakota, Manhattan. Who the hell threw that building at Loki? Mount Rushmore has a new face mounted on it, Red Skulls thin layer of skin over his jagged bone head sits right next to Abe. The issue ends with Wolverine finally opening up to Hawkeye about what changed him, one page after the most powerful Wolverine panel ever. It's not often you see Wolverine cry.